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Bangladesh election observer controversy casts new doubt on polls
Commission's list of monitors scrutinized over ruling party ties
A woman votes in Bangladesh's last general election in 2018, which was marred by violence and allegations of rigging. © Reuters
FAISAL MAHMUD, Contributing writerAugust 21, 2023 13:17 JST
DHAKA -- As Bangladesh gears up for a general election due early next year, a list of observers has cast fresh doubt on the legitimacy of polls they are tasked with monitoring.
The Election Commission this month published names of 68 approved observers online. Their presence is supposed to ensure voting will be conducted fairly. But rather than easing fears among the opposition and international critics that the election may be manipulated, the list has only deepened suspicion of the government's intentions.
Local media investigations found that nearly half the observers are just "names" with no track record of monitoring elections or have strong links to the ruling Awami League party, in clear violation of election laws. Nikkei Asia contacted a number of the observers and found similar issues.
One entity, named "Shishu Prativa Bikash Kendra," is led by Mizanur Rahman, a former president of the ruling party's student wing and a ruling committee member of a ward in the capital, Dhaka. When contacted, Rahman conceded that his organization has no experience observing local or national elections, though he claimed that it has the "full capacity" to be an observer without elaborating.
Election Commission officials acknowledged the controversy and said there is still scope for amending the list, promising to consider written complaints against any of the names.
Anisur Rahman, a commissioner of the current six-member panel, told Nikkei that a notice has been posted on the commission's website, welcoming such inquiries. "We will prepare the final list after investigating the complaints, if there are any," he said.
Mohammad Ali Arafat, a ruling party lawmaker and member of the Awami League's central committee, also assured Nikkei that the Election Commission would not grant final approval to an organization "if there is any objection with solid proof provided."
But critics argue that this episode has further dented the commission's already damaged credibility, after previous polls were marred by allegations of rigging -- staunchly denied by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her government.
Opposition members believe the commission is essentially a partisan entity that does the ruling party's bidding.
Rumeen Farhana, who resigned from parliament late last year along with other lawmakers from the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party to protest against the government, said the list of observers was proof that the government is "determined to continue its power through another sham election."
Tensions surrounding the upcoming polls have already reached a boiling point, with the BNP and its allies staging regular street demonstrations and demanding the installation of a neutral caretaker government to oversee the elections. The country's apex court nullified a legal provision allowing for such a caretaker back in 2011, during the first of the Awami League's three consecutive tenures.
Global powers including the U.S. and the European Union -- the two main destinations for Bangladesh's multibillion dollar ready-made garment exports -- have repeatedly expressed doubts about the possibility of holding a free and fair election under the current government in Dhaka. In a drastic move, the U.S. government this year declared that it would deny visas to Bangladeshis who "undermine democratic elections."
Despite the domestic and international pressure, Hasina's government has ruled out restoring the caretaker system. Instead, it says it has empowered the Election Commission to conduct free and fair polls.
Mubashar Hasan, a research fellow at Western Sydney University, is skeptical. He said that using fake observers is a common tactic among authoritarian regimes. He termed Bangladesh's current list a sign that the commission is "not free and without bias," saying the Awami League is likely planning "to go ahead with an election that will be endorsed by these partisan observers."
Likewise, Ali Riaz, a distinguished professor of political science at Illinois State University in the U.S., said that if the government's and commission's repeated assurances of a commitment to fairness were true, they would not need to "violate the laws and handpick observer organizations."
"This action, along with others, is an indication that under the present circumstances, a free, fair, and acceptable election that would ensure the participation of the voters is not the objective of the government and the EC," he said.
The last two general elections under the Awami League government, in 2014 and 2018, were fraught with boycotts by the main opposition parties and accusations of massive ballot stuffing. The Election Commission itself drew sharp criticism from opposition parties and independent observers alike.
In 2018, the commission at the time was found to have welcomed foreign observers who had no experience, as reported in local and international media. Those observers endorsed the results as "free and fair" while The Washington Post newspaper likened the outcome -- a 96% win for the Awami League -- to something one would expect in North Korea.
Nazmul Ahsan Kalimullah, president of JANIPOP -- considered a reputable election monitoring group in Bangladesh -- told Nikkei Asia that the 2018 monitors were "election tourists" rather than "election observers."
"For being an election observer, you need to have certain traits and track records, and they obviously didn't have that," Kalimullah said.
Iftekharuzzaman, executive director of Transparency International's Bangladesh chapter, who goes by one name, said the current Election Commission should have learned from the 2018 fiasco.
He said the current law gives the commission ample authority and means to select only neutral and unbiased observers, free from conflicts of interest. "Failure to do so will not only turn out to be a mockery of the election observance, but also further deepen and widen the credibility crisis the commission already faces," he said.
Bangladesh election observer controversy casts new doubt on polls
Commission's list of monitors scrutinized over ruling party ties
asia.nikkei.com
